Netflix to Officially Begin Streaming New Disney Films in September

Way back in 2012 (or at least it feels way back), Netflix and Disney struck a deal for all of Disney’s movies — including titles from Marvel, Pixar and Lucasfilm — to stream exclusively on Netflix Instant. According to the terms of their agreement, the deal wouldn’t kick in until 2016, which just so happens to be the year in which we are currently living. As announced today, Netflix will officially begin streaming Disney films in September, but that doesn’t mean the studio’s entire library will magically appear in your Instant browser.

From September onwards, Netflix will become the exclusive U.S. pay TV home of the latest films from Disney, Marvel, Lucasfilm, and Pixar.

So what does that mean, exactly? Netflix’s deal with Disney is for exclusive pay TV rights — rights that were previously held by Starz until their deal expired in January. Now, instead of premiering on HBO or another premium network, Captain America: Civil War will arrive on Netflix Instant following the usual retail window. This would be after a Disney film leaves theaters and after it becomes available to purchase on DVD and Blu-ray a few months later.

Although Netflix will begin streaming Disney films in September, their deal actually kicked in on January 1. Any new Disney films released after that date will make their pay TV debut exclusively on Netflix Instant, which includes Lucasfilm, Disneynature, Pixar and Walt Disney Animation titles.

This means that Captain America: Civil War, Zootopia, Finding Dory, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and Doctor Strange — to name a few — will eventually be available to watch on Netflix Instant. As for how long you’ll have to wait between Disney’s DVD release and the Netflix premiere date: that depends on individual titles, and it could be about six months after the initial retail date.

In any case, you will (eventually) be able to watch new Star Wars and Pixar movies on Netflix Instant, which is definitely an exciting prospect — even though none of us really need more browsing options.